Pencil-sharpener.



H. LA CASSE.

PENCIL SHABPENER.

APPLICATION FILED 0150.22.1913

7 1,154,325. 7 PatentedSept, 21, 1915.

INVENTOR WITNESSES HENRY LA CASS-E, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

PENCIL-SHARPENER.

Application filed December 22, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HENRY LA CAssE, a.

citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles, State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Pencil-Sharpeners, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a pencil sharpener of the type manipulated in the hands of the user, that is, of the type placed over the end of a pencil and rotated thereon by direct manual operation; and this invention consists in certain combinations and details of structure and operation embodying a peculiar provision and arrangement of cutting edges and embodyingthe provision in combination of devices for sharpening the leads of pencils.

One of the primary features of my invention is the disposition of the cutting edges effective for sharpening the wooden casing of a pencil. In ordinary pencil sharpeners there is provided a single cutting or knife edge which extends unbroken throughout the length of the cut or sharpened portion of the pencil end. There are various objections to this form of cutting edge, among which is the inability to obtain a good cutting bite on the pencil unless excessive pressure is exerted.

One of the primary features of this inven tion is the placement of the cutting edges at such an angle that a shearing cut is obtained on the pencil and the subdivision of such a cutting edge into a plurality of cutting edges arranged substantially end to end longitudinally on the sharpener, each cutting portion having sharpened end edges so that as the pencil is forced longitudinally into the sharpener each cutting portion will cut a clean shaving from the pencil. In order to obliterate the marks which would otherwise be left by the ends of each cutting portion, the ends of the adjacent cutting portions overhang one another longitudinally in such a manner that at the points of abutment of adjacent cutting portions there are two cutting edges operating upon the same portion of the pencil.

All of these features, and other features entering into the combination included in my invention, are explained in detail in the following specification, reference being had to the preferred form of my device shown in the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure l is a view showing a plan of my Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. Sept. 21, 1915.

Serial No. 808,066.

improved pencil sharpener in its protective casing, Fig. 2 is an end View thereof, Fig. 3 is an elevation of the pencil sharpener alone, Figs. 4 and 5 are end elevations of the same, Fig. 6 is an exterior view of the protective casing for my pencil sharpener, Fig. 7 is an end view thereof, Fig. 8 is an enlarged longitudinal section of the sharpener, Fig. 9 is a section taken as indicated by line 99 of Fig. 8.

In the drawings the numeral 10 may designate a suitable cylindrical casing in which my .pencil sharpener may be normally carried, provision being made for holdinga rubber eraser tip 11 in one end of the casing. The casinglO is designed for protecting the pencil sharpener, and for forming a convenient covering so that the sharpener may be carried in the pocket. A lip or the like 10 is adapted to enter longitudinal slot 18 in the sharpener body to prevent rotation ofthe sharpener in the casing.

My pencil sharpener includes fundamentally a hollow cylindrical body 15 having a tapered or conical end portion 16, the cutting edges being formed on opposite sides of longitudinal slot 18 which extends throughout the length of the body. In the tapered or conical portion of the body this slot 18 is widened as at 18, and the opposite edges of the slot are formed into the cutting edges as illustrated. One of the chief peculiarities of my invention resides inthe peculiar placement and formation of these cutting edges. The cutting edges are preferably formed by grinding or otherwise forming a series of fiat surfaces across the face of the enlarged longitudinal slot 18, these flat surfaces being designated by the numerals 19, 20, 21 and 22. There may be as many cutting edges as desired; in the present case I have shown four. The cutting edges 19= 20 21 and 22 are formed at the edges of the ground or otherwise formed surfaces 19, 20, 21 and 22; and the peculiar juxtaposition and relative arrangement of the cutting edges is best illustrated in Figs. 1, 8 and 9. It will be seen that the ground surfaces 19, 20, 21 and 22 are arranged in different planes, each at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the body, so that the heel point 23 of each of the cutting edges is below the nose 24 of each of the adjacent cutting edges. This is most clearly shown in Figs. 8 and 9. Between each cutting edge and the adjacent cutting edge, the

ting edge both longitudinally and transversely; with the effect that, at the points represented by the section of Fig. 9, there are two cutting edges operative upon the same portion of the pencil. In Fig. 9 a pencil is represented in dotted lines at 30;

and 1t 'Wlll be seen how both points 23 and 2a of adjacent cutting edges operate upon the same section of the pencil. The points 28 and 24 are preferably arranged at the same distance from the center about which the pencil is rotated; that is, they are arranged to be on the true circumference of the un-cut cross section of the pencil at that point in the sharpener. (In Fig. 9 the space between the pencil 30 and the bearing surface 50 is greatly exaggerated. In practice the pencil will bear against the surface 50, being thus supported against the cutting edges opposite.) The effect of this arrangement is that each end point or portion of each cutting edge obliterates the mark on the pencil which otherwise would be made by another end portion of an adjacent cutting edge. The cutting edges may be made in any configuration desired; in the present construction, I form the cutting edges so that the point of the pencil will be a true cone when finished. It is seen from the drawings that each cutting edge is placed at an angle to a plane determined by the longitudinal axis of the sharpener body and by any point in the cutting edge.- The cutting edges do not coincide with elements of the conical point of the pencil but cross those elements at a suitable angle, so as to obtain the shearing efi'ect herein described. This shearing cut operates to enable clean sharpening of the pencil with a minimum force applied. The pencil may be rotated in either direction and cutting effected by either set of cutters. One set of cutters is cutting the pencil while the other set is being sharpened by the abrasive action of the pencil rotating beneath the cutting edges. I

It is designed that the cutting edges 19, 20, 21 and 22 out only the wooden casing of the pencil, and do not cut the lead of the pencil. In this manner I may sharpen the wooden casing of the pencil back as far as desired from the point of the lead and may afterward sharpen the lead to suit. When a pencil is inserted in my sharpener and rotated therein, or the sharpener rotated around the pencil, the lead will project through the central end opening 31 and will not be cut by any of the cutting edges. The Wood may be sharpened back from the point this is generally true. But I provide means for allowing the compression of the body about a pencil which may be slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the sharpener. The reduced neck portion 35 forms a guide for the pencil inserted in the sharpener. The

longitudinal slot 18 throughout the body ofthe sharpener provides means for allowing contraction'of the sharpener about a pencil. I also provide short slits 36 in the body for the same purpose. In the portion of the body opposite the longitudinal slit IS I also longitudinally slit the body as at to, leaving only the bridges or webs 41 across the slit 40. This construction provides a section of weakened strength, and the whole body being made of resilient and elastic material, the webs' ll act as springs which resiliently yield to compression of the sharpener body about a pencil. In order to efficiently sharpen a pencil it is necessary that. the pencil be accurately guided; and this provision for easily compressing the sharpener body about the pencil provides just such an accurate guide as is needed. With such an accurate guide and with the cutting edges arranged as herein described, I am enabled to quickly and efliciently sharpen a pencil without any breakage of leads, and to cut a smooth and even conical surface. The cutting edges being short in longitudinal extent are adapted to take hold on the wood of the pencil without excessive longitudinal pres sure of the pencil into the sharpener; and each of the cutting edges cuts a clean smooth shaving from the pencil. The cutting edges may be very easily sharpened by simply running an oil stone or other sharpening implement across the faces 19, 20, 21 and 22, such implement having preferably a sharp edge to reach in under the overhanging points 24. The lead cutting edges may be sharpened in the same manner. It is one of the features of my invention that the cutters may be very easily sharpened without Or the removal from the body of the sharpener and without the use of any special sharpening device. The prlncipal feature of my invention is the diagonal shearing placement of the cutting edges. The division of the cutters into a plurality of sections facilitates this diagonal shearing arrangement; the

overlapping of the end edges of the cutterscauses the pencil to be sharpened into a uniform shape. The other features herein described complete my combination, producing a sharpener including all the features necessary for efficient use.

I claim 1. A pencil sharpener, comprising a hollow cylindrical body having a hollow tapered end portion, the whole body having a longitudinal slit through one of its walls from end to end and a spring portion formed in the opposite portion of the body wall so that the body may be resiliently compressed about a pencil, and a plurality of knife edges formed on opposite edges of said longitudinal slit in the tapered portion of the body, the edges on each side of the slit being j uxtaposed end to end.

2. A pencil sharpener, comprising a hollow cylindrical body having a hollow tapered end portion, the whole body having a longitudinal slit through one of its walls, from end to end and a spring portion formed in the opposite portion of the body wall so that the body may be resiliently compressed about a pencil, and a plurality of knife edges formed on opposite edges of said longitudinal slit in the tapered portion of the body, the edges on each side of the slit being juxtaposed end to end with one end of each cutting edge overhanging the adjacent end of the adjoining cutting edge.

3. A pencil sharpener, comprising a hollow cylindrical body having a hollow tapered end portion, the whole body having a longitudinal slit through one of its Walls, from end to end and a spring portion formed in the opposite portion of the body wall so that the body may be resiliently compressed about a pencil, and a plurality of knife edges formed on opposite edges of said longitudinal slit in the tapered portion of the body, each cutting edge being diagonal to a plane determined by the longitudinal axis of the body and by any point in the edge, so that each edge is in position to effect a shearing cut on a pencil, the edges of each side of the slit being juxtaposed end to end with one end of each cutting edge overhanging the adjacent end of the adjoining cutting edge.

4. In a pencil sharpener, a hollow cylindrical body having a longitudinal cutting edge, said cutting edge being formed of a plurality of individual cutting edges arranged substantially longitudinally end to end and formed directly on the body, the individual cutting edges being separated by transverse slits and one end of each individual edge overhanging the adj acent end of the adjacent edge.

5. In a pencil sharpener, a hollow cylindrical body with a hollow conical portion, the conical portion having a longitudinal slit with a cutting edge on one side thereof, said cutting edge being formed directly on the body and comprising a plurality of in dividual cutting edges arranged substantially longitudinally end to end, each cutting edge being slightly diagonal to the longitudinal axis of the body, and the cutting edges being separated by transverse slits in the body making an acute angle with the individual cutting edges at their ends toward the larger end of the conical body portion.

6. In pencil sharpeners, a cutter comprising a single piece of metal with a plurality of cutting edges formed thereon, the cutting edges being arranged substantially longitudinally end to end and each edge being slightly diagonal to the longitudinal line of the set of cutting edges, the edges being separated by transverse slits in the metal which slits make acute angles with one end of each cutting edge forming an acute angled corner, and said acute angled corners of the respective edges overhanging the adjacent ends of the adjacent edges, substantially as described.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed myname this 15th day of December 1913.

HENRY LA CASSE.

Witnesses:

JAMES T. BARKELEW, DANE. L. HOFFMAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0'. 

